La Papessa
by Phoenix Miko
Summary: "Storms are excellent. Especially spring storms. It makes you feel like something is about to begin…" And because they are always reflected in her eyes. SPOILER ALERT! You have been warned!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: ** I own nothing except the plot where Kagome is involved!

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><p><strong><em>Chapter 1<em>**

Nova gave his cousin a half-hearted glare, "Fel."

The red head clasped her hands together and bowed her head in regret, "I didn't mean to. I still don't have full control over my Arcana."

It was the night of the big party to celebrate the end of the Arcana Duello and Papa's successful recovery. Felicita had been mingling with Nova and Liberta. Pace was stuffing his face at the buffet table in the company of Luca and Debito. Dante was discussing business with Mondo and a few older members of the family. Everything was quite peaceful when Felicita noticed that Jolly was nowhere to be found.

She had remembered Jolly's devotion to curing Papa but now that Papa was out of harm's way, Felicita became curious as to what Jolly was going to do from now on. Letting her curiosity take control, she set out to find Jolly. She found him in his lab and tried to talk to him. However, it seemed as if Jolly saw right through her and immediately had his guard up. He had blocked all her attempts to try and get some answers from him by changing the subject. When she was about to give up and head back to the party, her Arcana activated itself and gave her a glimpse of what was in Jolly's heart.

After that, she did her best to hide her guilt and excused herself and instantly went to find Nova and Liberta.

When she did, Felicita led them out into the garden near the fountain where she told them what happened.

"Well, what did you see?" questioned their blonde friend causing Nova to raise a condescending eyebrow, "Really, Liberta?"

The other boy only shrugged, "What? She already saw it? Might as well."

Nova sighed in defeat and rubbed his temples. Taking that as the 'go' signal, Felicita spoke, "I saw Jolly...with a woman I have never met before."

"A woman?" asked Liberta.

Felicita nodded.

"Can you describe her, ojou?" requested Nova as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"I didn't see her face clearly. All I can say is she had long black hair and blue eyes. I heard her mutter something to him and, I'm not sure but it sounded like Mama's native tongue."

Liberta tilted his head, "A Giapponese woman? With Jolly? What were they doing?"

Felicita shrugged, "They were just talking... But..." She trailed off. Even she couldn't believe what she saw.

Feeling a hand on her shoulder, Fel looked up to see Nova looking at her encouragingly, "Go on, Fel."

She bit her lip, "Jolly was...happy."

Liberta's brows disappeared into his messy bangs before scrunching together, "Uh... Are you sure he wasn't just his usual sadistic self?"

Felicita shook her head, "There's no mistake. He was genuinely smiling at her."

A few moments of silence passed, each of them lost in their own thoughts, when Nova spoke again, "... Perhaps, you saw his wife?"

Ojou raised an eyebrow, "His wife?"

"Luca's mother. However, what happened to her remains a mystery. She disappeared around the time Luca was born," explained her cousin.

Liberta folded his arms behind his head, "Do you think she ran away?"

Nova nodded, "It is a possibility. At that time, Jolly had only just begun experimenting on humans to bind to the Tarocco. Perhaps, she did not approve of it?"

A deep voice caught the three of the off guard, "Isn't it a bit late to be gossiping?"

The three teenagers whirled around to see Dante and Mondo walking calmly towards them. They gulped nervously.

"P-Papa! What are you doing out here? I-Is the party over?" asked Fel, trying to change the subject.

Mondo raised an eyebrow, "It is for the three of you."

Dante crossed his arms, "What's this about Jolly's wife, hm?"

Nova and Liberta winced, knowing they were in deep trouble.

Felicita lowered her head and confessed everything to the two adults. It was futile to hide it now anyway. When she was done, Nova and Liberta stiffly stood beside her, already expecting their punishment.

Dante spoke up, "I see. So you've discovered a few things about Jolly's past."

Mondo smirked knowingly at the tense teens and proclaimed in a booming voice, "The three of you are to return to your rooms immediately and go to bed early."

Three pairs of eyes blinked, "Eh?"

**_The Next Day…_**

"Um, Luca-nii-chan?"

Luca's hand stilled over the handle of the pan.

_'Nii-chan?'_

No one ever called him that…

Looking down, he saw a pair of orange eyes looking up at him curiously. He blinked dumbly at the child before he looked around at the otherwise empty kitchen before staring back at him. He slowly pointed a finger to himself, "Me?"

The boy nodded, a small smile on his face, "Hai."

Luca blinked owlishly at the smiling child in front of him. Sighing, Luca let a smile of his own spread across his face. The child was just being polite. _'At least he didn't call me an ojii-san,'_ he mused.

Kneeling down to meet the child eye-to-eye, Luca beamed at his guest, "What's your name?"

The moment he asked, he noticed a bright sparkle in the child's eyes. It was as if, the little one was afraid he would reject an audience. Eyes softening, Luca watched in amusement as the boy's expression brightened, "It's Elmo."

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><p><em><strong>AN: **_I know, I know. I still have to update _"New Life, New Adventure" _including a few other stories but, I couldn't resist! This one has been bugging me ever since I finished watching **La Storia della Arcana Famiglia**.

I just ADORE Jolly!

Anyway, please forgive any mistakes. I swear, I have read this over and over already but, I'm pretty sure that there are still a lot of typos. I'll just fix them later. Hope you enjoyed!

BTW, I wasn't sure if Luca knew about Elmo or not. I can't remember if they've met in the anime, and I haven't played the game so... yeah. I just sort of winged it. Hope it wasn't too awful...

Please Read and Review!


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing except the plot where Kagome is involved!

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><p><strong><em>Chapter 2<em>**

"What brings you here, Elmo? Are you lost? Where are your parents?"

"Um, Luca-nii-cahn is familiar with alchemy, right? You were a student of Jolly."

Luca raised an eyebrow, _'This child knows Jolly? An apprentice, perhaps?'_

Elmo shifted and Luca noticed that he was holding something behind his back. Before he could ask, Elmo spoke again, "I'm not really good at alchemy but," he held out the book and gripped it tightly, "I want to try something for Jolly and I was wondering if you could help me."

The older male blinked dumbly thinking he heard wrong, "Eh?"

Elmo's expression turned hopeless as he lowered the book dejectedly, "I guess it was impossible after all?"

Not liking to discourage children, Luca began waving his hands everywhere trying to form an answer, "Um, you see, Jolly and I… uh, how should I say this…" He cast one glance at the crestfallen child and before he could stop, Luca found himself agreeing to help Elmo.

The smile returned to Elmo's face, "Really? Thank you, Luca-nii-chan!"

Feeling utterly defeated, Luca sighed and nodded. He told Elmo to wait until he finished cooking and promised that he would help him after he was done. Ecstatic, Elmo climbed unto one of the chairs in the kitchen and began his waiting.

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><p>"All right, that's the last of it. Now, we can discuss what you wanted to do." Announced Luca as he dusted off his hands and removed his apron.<p>

Elmo jumped off the table and handed him the book enthusiastically, "This is one of Jolly's simpler and earlier experiments."

Luca knelt down and gently took the book. He had never seen it before, but it was old and worn indicating that it has been around for quite some time. The cover was slightly deteriorating and the pages felt brittle between his fingers. Luca felt that if they weren't careful, it would crumble at their touch. Slowly, and with Elmo's directions, he opened it to a page containing some sort of summoning circle. The print was small and faded but, readable still. At the edges and corners were Jolly's handwritten notes.

Luca skimmed over them and found something. Meeting Elmo's dark orange eyes, Luca raised an eyebrow, "The Philosopher's Stone?"

The boy grinned and nodded, "Yes. It says here that Jolly researched it before. This is the page where he obtained the spell to summon it."

Luca's eyes narrowed, "Do you know that studying this is taboo?"

Elmo's expression quickly changed, "It is? But…" Disappointed and feeling foolish, Elmo lowered his gaze to the ground thinking that his plans were over before they began.

Fearing that he had just crushed a child's dreams, Luca hastily skimmed over the book once more. In his rush, a piece of paper fell to the ground. Picking it up, violet eyes carefully read Jolly's handwriting. It was a bunch of notes regarding Jolly's experiment, though for some reason, Luca had a hard time piecing them together. It contained something about a failed performance to which Luca had to raise an eyebrow.

Aside from the fact that he had no idea what exactly failed to perform, he noticed how vague and hasty Jolly's words were on this paper. In all the time he spent learning alchemy under Jolly, he never knew his previous mentor to be so imprecise about facts and records.

Glancing back and forth between the silent, sulking boy, and the piece of paper in his hands, Luca had an idea. If Jolly had failed in this experiment, then, what was the harm in allowing Elmo to try it? They were less likely to succeed anyway. If this experiment fails, Luca can simply tell the boy to try a different approach in impressing Jolly. His mind made up, Luca patted Elmo's head.

"I'm sorry for being so harsh, Elmo. Here, why don't we just try the experiment? I can't guarantee that it will produce promising results but, at least when it doesn't work, we can try other, safer things. How does that sound?"

The effect was instantaneous as Elmo beamed at him and nodded, "Thank you, Luca-nii-chan!"

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><p>True to his word, Luca helped Elmo set up the ritual. He gathered the required items and placed them accordingly around the circle drawn on the floor. The circle, they had copied from Jolly's journal entries. There was a six-pointed star inscribed inside it with other intricate symbols that Elmo could not understand.<p>

By the time they were finished their preparations, it was already nearing luncheon. Elmo handed Luca a piece of parchment, "This is what Jolly used before."

Luca raised an eyebrow, "How do you manage to get your hands on this stuff?"

Elmo laughed slightly, "Jolly lets me read anything and when I find some of his scattered notes, he never seems to mind."

Still a bit concerned, Luca focused on the task at hand. As he read the words, he could feel something foreign rise in his gut.

A wind suddenly picked up in the underground lab, causing loose papers to fly around. As Luca continued, the wind became stronger. Soon, even books began to dance around them. Instinctively, Luca took a firm hold of Elmo's hand when he felt the boy lean against him.

He could faintly hear Elmo's words, suggesting that they stop. He said something about having to clean the mess before Jolly came back or they would be in trouble. But, for the life of him, Luca could not tear himself away from the incantation in his hand.

The drawn symbol on the floor began to glow and the ground under them was suddenly warm. Luca felt Elmo clutch his pants as the boy buried his face against his leg. The wind became wilder as the symbol grew brighter. The strange feeling only grew stronger and Luca felt as if something was calling him, urging him to finish what they started.

However, when he reached the end of the chant, Luca came to his senses. Cursing under his breath, he raised his free hand to protect his eyes against the violent wind swirling around them. Glancing back to the symbol, his eyes widened as it lifted from the floor and moved so that it was facing them.

Luca stared long enough to see a black circle forming at the center before the ferocity of the wind forced him to turn away completely and hug Elmo protectively. The strong wind blocked out any and every sound with its violence and Luca vaguely wondered if they would be able to hear properly again.

Then, it exploded.

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><p><em><strong>AN: **_Please forgive the errors for now. Hope you enjoyed!

Please Read and Review!


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing except the part where Kagome is involved!

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><p><strong><em>Chapter 3<em>**

Jolly stiffened. Something wasn't right. Suddenly standing, Jolly startled the other two occupants in the room.

Mondo raised an eyebrow at his advisor, "What's the matter, Jolly?"

The only reply he got was Jolly's immediate exit from the room.

Exchanging concerned looks with Dante, the both of them followed after their friend.

They noticed that Jolly was headed for his lab and as they drew nearer, they could hear why. At the first clear, crash, Jolly broke out into a run, leaving the others behind.

In passing, he was inwardly grateful for his body's youth.

As soon as his lab was in sight, Jolly was hit with a hauntingly familiar feeling forcing him to stop. He had only felt like this once before.

_'It's impossible...'_

A lot less amused than before, Jolly walked towards the door of his lab. Reaching for the handle, he all but threw open the door only to be thrown back by an explosion. He did, however, manage to raise his arms to shield his face.

The impact of his back with the stone wall caused the latter to shatter under his weight. Groaning, Jolly gritted his teeth in annoyance. Shaking his head, he stood up and wasted no time in entering his now, destroyed lab. There was smoke everywhere. Scowling at the state of his treasured lab, the first thing he did was seek out the culprits. However, the moment the smoke cleared, his blood froze instantly and all thoughts of punishment left him.

There, in the center of the devastation, lay was his wife.

"…Kagome…"

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><p>When Mondo and Dante reached the lab, they took note of the rubble and the awry papers and books as well as all the broken glass.<p>

Walking towards the door, they immediately spotted Luca and Elmo unconscious near the wall. Dante went over and picked up the heavier of the two, leaving Mondo to take the other. There was still some smoke trapped in the lab but, it wasn't enough to cause any harm.

Looking around, the two of them searched for Jolly.

"Oi! Jolly, where are you?"

"Jolly!"

After a few moments of silence, Mondo and Dante considered going further inside. But as the smoke continued to lessen, they saw what they assumed to be Jolly's figure emerging from the center of the room carrying someone in his arms. As he drew closer, they saw it was a woman.

Impeccably long raven-colored hair trailed behind Jolly as he walked steadily towards them. Pale skin shone unobstructed by anything other than the thin layers of remaining smoke. The soft rise and fall of her chest was the only sign that she was alive.

Dante was about to ask who it was but, the moment his eyes saw the mark on her abdomen, he felt his breath caught. Beside him, Mondo let out a gasp, telling him that Papa also realized who that person was.

"Could it be…?"

Felicita, Nova, and Liberta came rushing towards them.

"We heard an explosion! Is everyone all right?" asked the blonde boy. Seeing Luca and Elmo draped over Dante and Papa, he automatically aided Dante by draping Luca's other arm over his shoulder. Nova, on the other hand, took Elmo, with Felicita easing the boy unto his back.

Noting that both adults said nothing, Nova glanced sideways at what they seemed to be gawking at. He saw Jolly standing still, looking back at them with a naked woman in his arms. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Liberta fighting down a strong blush as he stuttered, "O-Oi! C-Come on! Let's go before this place falls on top of us."

When nobody moved, Liberta cursed and stepped on Dante's foot. Hard.

The older man barked in pain, the sound snapping Mondo out of it.

"Felicita, Nova, what are you doing here?"

Fel shook her head and pointed to the exit, "First, we have to get out of here, Papa."

Agreeing with his daughter, Mondo led all of them out of what was left of the Jolly's lab.

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><p>They had placed Luca and Elmo in a spare room, letting Sumire and the maids look after them. So far, they only sustained minor injuries. Aside from the splitting headaches when they wake up, both of them will be just fine.<p>

The woman, on the other hand, was in Jolly's room. Mondo and Dante had tried talk Jolly into letting Sumire examine her but, the alchemist absolutely refused to let anyone but himself enter the room. In the end, Mondo and Dante gave in and let him have his way.

It's been four hours since the incident and teams have been dispatched to secure and repair the damage to Jolly's lab whereas Papa and Dante were left to explain everything to Fel and the boys.

"That woman, as you, three, might have guessed, is Jolly's wife and Luca's mother."

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><p><em><strong>AN: **_A little short, but a chapter nonetheless!

Please forgive the errors. I'll fix them, I promise!

Hope you enjoyed!

Please Read and Review!


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing except the part where Kagome is involved!

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><p><strong><em>Chapter 4<em>**

**_Flashback…_**

_"Priestess, do you wish for his life?"_

Blue eyes stared helplessly at the Jewel. Her mouth had gone dry as her eyes released endless rivers. She couldn't speak. She couldn't say she didn't wish for it, because that would be a lie. Neither could she say that it was, for that would be a selfish wish.

For the second time in her life, Kagome was stuck in the darkness of the Jewel as the accursed thing read her heart and cajoled her. The pain in her heart was unbearable but, she could not succumb to the Shikon's tempting offers.

_'There has to be another way… Please…'_

_"There is no other way, Kagome," _replied the Jewel as it read her heart, _"If you want to retrieve his soul from the Underworld, you must wish for it. Don't you want to save him?"_

"Of course, I want to save him! B-But I can't wish for such a thing! _I can't!_"

_"Yes, you can. You know the words, Kagome. You know what your heart desires. What is so selfish about wishing for another's life?"_

Kagome covered her ears and sobbed, "I c-can't…"

She could feel her guilt, her sorrow, and her desperation tearing her apart. What should she do? What should she _do_?

_"Do you want the power to change his fate?" _

It was a voice she had never heard before. It asked again and this time, Kagome looked up.

Floating in front of her was a card. There was a woman seated on a throne with a veil behind her and an open book in her hands. On her chest was a cross and her hair was covered by some sort of religious headdress and on it, was the full moon. Two pillars flanked her—one was black while the other was white.

"Wh-Who are you?" came the priestess' broken voice.

_"I am the Tarocco you established a contract with, La Papessa. Again, I shall ask: Do you want the power to change his fate?"_

"Y-Yes…" came her quivering reply.

_"Are you willing to endure the payment?" _The Tarocco floated in front of her, as if assessing her determination and sincerity. It was testing her resolve.

"W-What do you mean? Are you telling me that you can grant my wish, too?" Kagome asked cautiously. She had had enough of mysterious objects offering to fulfill her heart's desires.

_"Fear not, my host. I am not like the gem you guard for I fulfill without malice. However, like all wishes there will be a price to pay in exchange for a life."_

Falling to her knees, Kagome stared numbly at the card. Would she risk it? Would she allow this strange relic to grant her wish? Can she believe that _La Papessa _will not betray her and corrupt her wish like the Shikon?

_"Deception is not my purpose for I can gain nothing from it. Do not fret, my host. I shall fulfill only what you desire me to, nothing more, nothing less."_

Kagome's tears came back full force already dreading her answer.

She would do it. She would do it to save him. Her child.

Violet eyes flashed in her mind making her cry even more. _'I'm sorry… I-I'm so sorry… I love you… Jolly.'_

"I… I'll do it…"

_"Very well, then call out…"_

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><p>Blinding light shot out from Kagome's body forcing Jolly and everyone else to shield their eyes.<p>

Kagome cast a loving look at the unmoving babe in her arms before crying out.

"La Mano di Dio!"

The mark on her womb shone through her clothes, answering her call.

A strong wind wildly thrashed the room as if in a tornado. It was deafening but, Jolly heard her loud and clear above the chaos. Instantly, he knew what she had done. With wide, frantic eyes, Jolly reached out for Kagome's hand, ignoring the painful glare of light and the violent gusts of wind, "KAGOME!"

Strong arms circled his as Dante and Mondo restrained him before he could get within an arm's length, effectively preventing him from going into the center of the fray.

The alchemist thrashed in their hold, desperately trying to reach for his wife, "Let go of me! Kagome!"

Kagome cast him one last, teary smile.

Then she was gone, leaving a healthy, crying baby in her wake.

**_End of Flashback…_**

"That was the only time I have ever seen Jolly lose his composure. I have never seen him like that in all the years we have been friends," remarked Dante, closing his eyes at the memory.

Mondo nodded in agreement, "The loss of his wife dealt him a great deal of suffering. He may not show it, but Felicita's Lovers confirmed it. Jolly was haunted by the memory of Kagome and now that she is back..."

Crossing his arms, Dante spoke, "I doubt Jolly knows how to face her when she wakes."

Papa nodded, "He never expected that Kagome would ever come back."

"I think that was the reason why drowned himself with his devotion to you, Mondo."

At this, the head of the family hummed in thought, "That is possible. At that time, he had his doubts about raising Luca by himself. He held no trust for his own capabilities as a father, so he entrusted Luca to me."

"Um…" Felicita began, unsure of what she was about to say, "I felt something else from Jolly last night, something heavier and darker. I can't tell what it is exactly but, I think it has something to do with Kagome-san's Tarocco."

Dante and Mondo immediately stiffened. Nova's keen eyes noticed their tension and calmly prodded for them to answer, "What was Kagome-san's Tarocco?" He recalled catching sight of a Tarocco mark on the woman's stomach.

Dante sighed, "… La Papessa."

"How did she come to be its host?" asked Liberta, though he could tell that he was not the only one who suspected the answer.

It was Mondo's turn to sigh, "I believe it was my fault."

"Papa?"

"At that time, I was only beginning to feel the consequences of shouldering the unbound Major Arcana. It was suffocating. Jolly, despite his recent marriage, began working on a way to help ease my burden. I think this was before anyone, even Kagome, knew she was pregnant with Luca. She helped in the experiments and was Jolly's first successful test subject."

Fel and the others stiffened. Kagome-san was pregnant?

"The process, as I was told, went smoothly so we came to the conclusion that binding people to Tarocco wouldn't be any trouble. However, it wasn't until Luca's birth did we realize the cruel effects of the Tarocco's contract."

There was a gasp from Felicita, "You mean…"

Dante nodded, continuing the tale, "While it differs for every individual, the consequences of a contract with a Tarocco are unavoidable. Now that I think about it, perhaps, Kagome unconsciously used her La Papessa to prevent any physical pain and, as a result, her Luca's life was taken at birth."

Liberta gulped, "What exactly is her Tarocco's power?"

The grim look in Mondo's eyes caught the three teens slightly off guard.

"La Papessa: The High Priestess. She symbolizes duality and fertility and is one of the most mysterious in the Major Arcana. She has the power to change one's fate."

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><p><em><strong>AN: **_A little longer than the rest!

As usual, I'll fix the errors soon so ignore them for now!

Hope you enjoyed!

Please Read and Review!


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing except the part where Kagome is involved!

* * *

><p><strong><em>Chapter 5<em>**

Nova's eyes widened in understanding, "So that means… If Kagome-san unconsciously used her Tarocco while she was pregnant, it spared her fate of experiencing any physical pain at the cost of her child. Then, when she called upon it once more to bring her baby back to life, the Tarocco took her as compensation?"

The grim expressions on Mondo and Dante's faces confirmed their suspicions. Fel raised a hand to her mouth in disbelief, "How cruel…"

Liberta's fists were clenched tightly at his sides, "Don't joke around…"

Mondo waited a moment before he proceeded, "Initially, we assumed Kagome to be dead. However, when a person dies, their contract with the Tarocco is broken. Should that happen, it will automatically be felt by me. That was not the case with Kagome."

Dante spoke, "For the past twenty years, Mondo and I took turns in the search for her."

"That was how I came across your mother, Felicita. I was in the East when I met Sumire," supplied Mondo, his eyes softening as he looked across at his daughter.

"And that was how I came across you, Liberta," continued Dante, "Kagome was our original mission but as time passed, any hopes of finding her withered away."

Fel turned her pained eyes to her father, "Papa? Aren't you able to sense the whereabouts of a Tarocco? Shouldn't you have been able to find her?"

Papa closed his eyes again and sighed, "That is also correct, Felicita, however, try as I might, I could not trace the location of the La Papessa. The only thing I could tell was if it still existed and if its host was alive. It was as if it had been cloaked from my sight."

Leaning back in his chair, Mondo continued, "The dark and heavy emotion you felt from Jolly was probably his guilt."

"Guilt?" asked Liberta, "Why would he be guilty?"

Nova shook his head and turned to his friend, "Jolly believed that it was his fault what happened to Kagome-san."

A few tears escaped Fel's eyes, startling Liberta and Nova before they tried to comfort her.

"All this time, Jolly was suffering… Twenty years of believing that it was his fault…" Sniffling, Fel looked back at her father and Dante, "Does Luca know any of this?"

They shook their heads.

"Jolly told us not to say a word to him. He thinks that incurring his son's hatred for him is the least he could endure after what happened. However," Mondo looked out the window in thought, "Luca is still Kagome's son. It would seem that he inherited his mother's forgiving heart but, Jolly's actions towards him and his friends caused Luca dislike and doubt his father's motives."

Liberta slumped in his seat and ran a hand over his face. He could barely understand the reasoning behind Jolly's actions. He imagined that if it was him, he would not be able to stay away from his son, let alone keep such a big secret from him…yet, he couldn't really blame Jolly. The man spent most of his life thinking that everything was his fault.

Nova rubbed a sobbing Fel's back distractedly as he was lost in his own thoughts.

* * *

><p>Looking over his shoulder and through his window, he noticed the rain clouds looming over Regalo.<p>

_'A spring storm?'_

He glanced back at the woman on his bed, _'How fitting…'_

Jolly leaned back on his chair, taking his cigar from his lips. Twirling it in his fingers, Jolly's mind drifted to a particular memory…

**_Flashback…_**

_"Jolly, close your eyes."_

_Stormy, blue eyes sparkled up at him._

_A slightly younger-looking Jolly raised an eyebrow. He had no shades then._

_Taking a long drag from his cigarette, he asked, "Now why would I do that?"_

_She bit her lip, "I want to… try something. Please?"_

_Staring at his companion, Jolly smirked when the female pouted prettily at him. Giving in, he closed his eyes. His smirk grew when he felt dainty fingers slowly removing he cigarette from his lips. One finger lingered on his bottom lip to keep his mouth slightly open._

_Getting the idea, Jolly lowered his head in search of her lips. Feeling her breath on his face, his hand moved to draw her body closer to his. Her thumb caressed him gently, coaxing him to open his mouth wider. Thrilled at her boldness, he willingly obeyed…_

_Jolly's eyes flew open when something was shoved into his mouth. The shocked expression on his face made the woman burst into laughter._

_Taking it out of his mouth, Jolly stared, confused, at the orange-colored treat before looking back at the giggling female._

_"What are you looking so disappointed for? It's candy!" She laughed again, "Were you expecting something else, Jolly?" Her tone was teasing and her azure eyes danced in triumph._

_Slowly, violet eyes glanced back at the sweet, "Candy?"_

_The female nodded, a big smile on her face, "It's a lollipop. I thought it'd be better than you smoking all the time so I bought you this. But, you looked so surprised!" There was another giggling fit._

_A smirk crept on his face as he put the treat back in his mouth and savored the sweet flavor. Raising a hand to rest at the back of her head, Jolly gently pushed until their foreheads met, "You're right. I was expecting something __**much sweeter **__but…" He watched as her face instantly flushed. Smirking, he dragged his mouth to her ear, letting his breath ghost over her it, "…this will do... For now."_

_Before she could react, he moved away, patting her head, "It's about time I went back to the lab." He sported a seductive smile, "Thank you for the meal."_

_As he began walking away, she shouted at him, cheeks burning red like there was no tomorrow, "Y-You pervert!"_

_He chuckled and waved slightly as he went on his way, "I'll be looking forward to more of your treats, Kagome…"_

**_End of Flashback…_**

He smirked. It has been a long time since he revisited his past.

Glancing back at her, Kagome had not moved an inch. Were it not for the continuous rise and fall of her chest, one would think that she had passed on in her sleep.

Raising a gloved hand, Jolly let his fingers ghost over her pale cheek. In the back of his mind, he feared that if he were to touch her, he would either wake up from another dream or she would shatter at the contact.

Studying her features for the umpteenth time since he set her down on his bed, Jolly noted how she looked exactly like she did twenty years ago only a little paler. There was no mistake. This was… _is _his wife. This was his Kagome…

The only indication that Time had touched her was the abnormal length of her raven tresses.

Jolly's hand was only a hair's breadth away from…

No. That was close enough.

Clenching his fists, Jolly slowly withdrew his hand and stared at the woman through his shades.

He had no right to get any closer...

If he could hear her voice again, one last time, Jolly vowed to stay away for good…

"J-Jol…ly…"

The thunder cracked.

His eyes widened as he looked at her face. It had been faint, but Jolly heard it as if she had screamed at him.

Kagome began to stir as her eyes fluttered open causing Jolly's breath to hitch. Her eyes were just as he remembered—blue storms and all.

"Kagome..."

* * *

><p><em><strong>AN: **_Longest chapter so far!

Yes, I know there are a lot of mistakes. Yes, I will fix them some day. Yes, this is the last update of today.

I have to sleep now!

Hope you're enjoying _"L__a Papessa" _so far!

Please, as always, Read and Review!


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